Wheel for automobiles or other vehicles.



rE TATES PATENT OEErcE.

JAMES o. ANDERSON, oE HIGHLAND PARK, ILLINOIS.

WHEEL FOR AUTOMOBILES OR OTHER VEHICLES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 637,691, dated November 21, 1899.

Application filed June 14, 1899. Serial No. 720,516. (No model.)

T0 all whom it r11/ry concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMES C. ANDERSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Highland Park, in the county of Lake and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wheels for Automobiles or other Vehicles; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the Y ful improvements in YWheels for vehicles andy especially that class known as automobiles. In automobile vehicles, as is well known, the power exerted for the propulsion of the vehicle is applied in a rotary direction di rectly to the wheel in contradistinction to the application of power in a horizontal and longitudinal direction to the vehicle, as in common use. Vhen the powerA iS applied directly to the wheel, the tendency is to cause the same to slip upon the road without eect-l ing the desired propulsion of the vehicle, and consequently it has been found not only desirable, but absolutely necessary, to equip the wheels with tires having. such properties o r characteristics as to secure the proper degree of adhesion to the roadway. In the progress of the art in the direction stated it has and will necessarily follow that they use of materials adapted to secure the required traction involves a more rapid destruction of the treadsurface of the tire, and with this knowledge in view the most approvtd material thus far used has been rubber, and for the sake of economy and in the lighter classes of automobiles inatable or pneumatic tires have been used, although in the heavier class known as autotrucks solid tires are necessary; but in both cases the necessary wear which takes place cannot be readily and economicallycompensated for, and af u rther concomitant disadvantage in the 4pneumatic tire rests in the fact that they are to a greater or less degree liable to puncture, which liability is greatly increased owing to the fact that in the ordinary use of 4automobiles they must of necessity travel over roadways not especially adapted to the use of such tires, and hence it has been found that the use of pneumatic tires involves frequent delays in travel and very large expense in repair and renewal, it having been ascertained that the average longevity of tires costing about twenty-five dolsteel or other suitable metallic circumferential box or tire-receptacle of peculiar form and arranging therein and projecting therefrom a tire proper or tread-surface composed of asphaltum and other ingredients applied in manner and proportions as hereinafter fully explained.

In order that those skilled in the art may knowhow to make my improved wheel and fully understand all of its advantages, I will proceed to describe the same in detail, referring to the accompanying drawing, which represents, partly in section and partly in perspective, a portion of the rim and tire of a Wheel embodying my invention, and in which- A is an ordinary wooden felly or rim, to which is secured by suitable screw-bolts B a steel box or receptacle C, having a dovetail recess, as shown. The dovetail recess constitutes a receptacle for the composition tire and serves to hold the same securely in place, as will be presently explained, and by reason of the shape of the circumferential receptacle a comparatively broad surface is obtained at the edge of each of the lateral walls or sides of the said box or receptacle.

D is the tire proper, located within the devetail recess of the box C and extending beyond the latter, as clearly shown, to constitute the tread. This tire is composed of asphaltum and any comminuted material having the characteristic of resistance to abrasists in providing the rim of the wheel with a IOO 'il n 'y Y Y .:yeaaeeij y sionesuch, for instance, as metallic filings," corundum, sand', aeand it will be und'er stood that 'wherever hereinafter I use theexressio sand or its equivalent I meanlto be understood-'t at I may mix with thelbody v Y or base of the compositionanyrcenynirnxted or granulated material best adapted to resist i l the abrading eiect which follows from the orvdinarycontact between thetireandia road; Way, the proportions and mixture beingjsuch as I will now proceed to describe.

y In filling the receptacle or 'dovetail space I firstemploy pure asphaltum at the base lor lwhat-may` be termed the .bottom of there# ceptacle. l then complete the llingof said box or receptacleand extendbeyond the same -of san insuchV roportionsa-S tODbi/Lin'a.

suicient degree ofl solidity and hardness for the tire, This Ido by gradually.increasing-` he quantity or proportion of sander equi-v-` s alentfuntilthe proper degree ofQhardness-isfA secured to protect the tire againstundue wear and at the Sametime with'outdepriving' it of its vgrasping or traction quality or' ,de-V

Y `privingitf'of its adaptability to take up the Y momentum shock. Y

.To properly andV expeditiously formwauid rlocate the'tire within its recessin the box Q," AI employ an apparatus which constitutes the subject-matter ofa concurrent application,

Serial No. 720,514, led by me on the 14th "-f day of June, 1899; but it will be obvious 'that I maybuild up the tire by hand,andlt,h.ere fore Ido not deem it necessary to hereindescribe in detail any particular apparatusl or v machine for makingthe tire. f

l While 'I have shown the securing-boltsB countersu'nk inthebase or bottom of therbox C, it will be lobvious that in View of the char.-

acter of the material constituting the tire said bolts neednot be so countersunk.

' When my improved wheels arel in use, it Ywill be readily understood that the weight fof 4the vehicle and any load carried therein will tend tocontinuously compact the tire be- -tween the inclined sides of the dovetail recess i in the receptacle vor box C and that thesand or equivalent `originally incorporated inthe asphaltumv or which may be picked up by the vtra-.eal-surfa'ce of the-tire will be gradually forced towardvthe base of the tire, thustend'- ingto intensify` or strengthen the union he'` tween the tire and -itsreceptacle l v Ultimately and after longand satisfactory .service it maybecome necessary to renew the tire, and this can be accomplished by removing the contents of the box or receptacle and replacing itwith a new tire in the manner hereinbefore described. i Any ordinary wear .of the outer or tread surface of the tire may `be compensated for and the tire restored to its original condition at any time by warm-` y ingthe outer surface of the tire and revolv as haltum! mixed with sand or any equivalentlg it in a bath of asphaltand sand oit-equivalent in suitable proportions. As before stated,

the peculiar ordovetail shape of the tire-receptacle secures comparative broad vsurfaces to what maybetermed the outer .edges of t the side walls, and if for any reason it should :befimpracticableat any time to-rebuild the tire and-itshould wear down to a plane coincident with `the side walls of the box the comparative broad, surfaces of the' outer `Walls will cooperate with the confined composition tire and render it eiicient until such time as 'it may be conveniently built up and restored toits proper height or thickness.

`rIn considering themany advantages of `my improved. wheelover the ordinary pneumatic tire or solid-rubbertire I desire todrawat- ,tention tothe fact that inv vehicles such as my improvedwheels `are designedgfor it is not at-all necessary thatthere should beany V,springt actionjin the wheel, asall such Vehi- ,cles lare provided with other suitable springs,

and it'is-'onlynecessary that thetires should jhave' such inherent properties that the mo.-

rnentumshOck-inay be taken up and dissipated and that the unpleasant noise produced -by the contactof an ordinary metal tire with theroadway maybe avoided. I desir-'ete lcall `attention tothe lfurther fact that all elforts heretoforemade andin the .use of any material heretofore suggested the elasticity of the tire has been secured necessarily at the expense of i thegwearin g properties of material used and that repai rs of such tires are necessarily expensive and require expert manipulation ,to a greater or less extent, whilewith my improved tire'the material employed is such i, that it may ben readilygrafted upon for the purpose of compensating'for,any` natural wear and that the process or method of in- ,grafting material uponV the tire does notreq-uire orembody any expert manipulation. Having described the construction and advantages of, my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent,

.isF y v- K, 1V. As a new article of manufacture a vehiclewheel\h aving. the rimsurrounded and 'equipped with a box or receptacle and a tirev located withimpandl extending from Said box -and composed of, lasphaltum and sand `or its equivalent, substantially as hereiubefore set forth. f

- 2J `In wheel, the combination with the rim A, ametallic box or receptacle() formed with a dovetail receSSas described, and a tire D composed of asphaltpm fand. sander its equivalent, as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I-rafx my. signature in presence of two witnesses.. i

Witnesses: l.

N.ICURrIs LAMMOND, JNO. J. HARROWER.

JAMES-C NDERSON.

ICO

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